Handkerchief fluffer



Sept. 16, 1941- J. F. HUEBSCH ET AL 2,255,928

HANDKERCHIEF FLUFFER Filed March 5, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 F Umvsmons 7 Hume.

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ATTORNEYS P 1941- J. F. HUEBSCH ET AL 2,255,928

HANDKERCHIEF FLUFFER Filed March 5, 1938 5 Sheets-Sheet Z ;NVENTOR5 ML. 1. MA

BY JMM ATTORNEYS Sept.'l6, 1941. J. F. HUEBSCH ET AL 'HANDKERCHIEF FLUFFER Filed March 5, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet '3 ATTORNEYS p 1941- J. F. HUEBSCH ET AL HANDKERCHIEF FLUFFER Filed March 5, 1938 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTORS kmw ATTORNEYS Sept. 16, 1941. J. F. HUEBSCH ET AL HANDKERCHIEF FLUFFER 5 Sheets-Shet 5 Filed March 5, 1958 mi m m mm W/JIIW Patented Sept. 16, 1941 HANDKERCHIEF FLUFFEH Joseph F. Huebsch, Miami, Fla., and Herbert J. Huebsch, Milwaukee, Wis., assignors to Huebsch Manufacturing Company, Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Application March 5, 1938, Serial No. 194,038

13 Claims.

The invention relates to handkerchief treating machines and more particularly to a machine for flufiing or straightening out handkerchiefs after the washing operation.

Handkerchiefs on delivery from the extractor are usually wadded up into small balls, and it is necessary for the operator to manually open up these balls before the handkerchiefs can be ironed. The object of the present invention is to provide a machine for fiufling or straightening out the wadded handkerchiefs. More particularly, the machine is designed to provide a casing into which the handkerchiefs are introduced and wherein they are subjected to a spreading and straightening action between relatively movable beaters which act to open up the handkerchiefs and then assist in delivering them from the machine in a straightened or fluffed out condition. In the particular embodiment of the machine herein shown the relatively movable heaters are formed by a rotary paddle or blade member and a blade member mounted on a relatively fixed casing, and means are provided for varying the distance between the blades of said rotary member and a side of said casing.

The inventionfurther consists in the several features hereinafter set forth and more particularly defined by claims at the conclusion hereof.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation view of a machine embodying the invention, parts being broken away;

Fig. 2 is a front end elevation view of the machine;

Fig. 3 is a detail vertical sectional View of the machine taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the machine with part of the casing broken away and with said part of the casing and its bearing structure shown in section;

Fig. 5 is a detail vertical sectional view through the drum and easing, parts being broken away.

The machine embodies a frame 6, a casing I mounted on said frame, a rotor 8 mounted to revolve in said casing, means for driving said rotor, means for adjusting said casing relative to said rotor, said casing having an opening therein, and a door for said opening having a charging and a discharging position. I

The frame 3 is provided with bearing members 9 and it in which the hub portions H and I2 of end plates l3 and I4 of the casing l are journalled. The hub portions II and [2 of said end plates are hollow and have roller bearings l5 mounted therein in which. the shaft [6 for the rotor 8 is journalled. The outer raceway of the bearing E5 in the hub portion II is held in place by a cap li mounted onsaid hub portion, and the outer raceway of the bearing l5 in the hub portion I2 is held in place by a sleeve l8 secured to said portion [2.

The shaft It has a portion l9 formed to provide lengthwise extending oppositely disposed curved recesses 25, said shaft also preferably being recessed as at 2| between said recesses 20. Members 22 of sheet rubber are mounted intermediate their ends in said recesses 20 and are clamped thereagainst by plates 23 curved similar to the recesses and secured in position by clamping screw 24 in threaded engagement with the shaft 16. Each member 22 is of relatively soft rubber and has a straight serrated edge 25 and a serrated edge 26 with serrations arranged in stepped formation. When clamped in position intermediate its ends. each member provides a pair of blades or paddles 21. The stepped serrated edge of one of the members 22 is oppositely disposed relative to that of the other member. Thus with this arrangement a four-bladed rotor is provided with one paddle having a stepped serrated edge interposed between paddles having straight serrated edges. The rotor also has drum-shaped guards 28 formed thereon or secured thereto adjacent the ends of the paddles 21.

The shaft l6 of the rotor has a pulley 29 mounted thereon and drivingly connected by a belt 30 to a pulley 3| on the shaft 32 of an electric motor 33 mounted on the frame of the machine.

The casing l is preferably in the form of a cylindrical drum, and the hub portions l l and I2 are eccentrically disposed relative to the center of the drum, so that the rotor shaft I6 is eccentrically mounted in said drum. A single relatively soft rubber beater or paddle member 34 is secured to the interior wall of the casing 1 by clamping members 35 and 38 anchored at their bases to said casing and secured in clamping engagement with said member 34 by bolts 31. This paddle member 34 has a straight serrated edge 38 and projects down into the casing so that it cooperates with the paddles 22 to form keep them in motion. For small size lots of the articles to be treated may then be introduced into the drum. The door is then swung back to closed position and secured in this position handkerchiefs, for example one to twenty-five,

the casing center and. the rotor center are approximately in a vertical plane, and the clearance is smallest. v bring its center lower down, the clearance between the casing and the rotor blades is -increased. The clearance is increased when the As thejcasing is shifted to by the rotating of the upper cam 52 to its hingerod-holding or latching position. The rotor 8 is then rotated by the electric motor 33 which may be conveniently controlled by the hand switch 55. After, in most cases, not more than one minute of operation of the rotor the handkerchiefs or other similar articles by being carried around by the paddles 22 in an anti-clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 3 and being pulled through the gap or space between said paddles and the fixed paddle member 34 are, by the charge of handkerchiefs is increased because with the increased bulk the action would be too severe when the entire load becomes lodged at the bottom, andthe increased clearance perrnits a certain proportion of the charge to lodge while the other is carried upwardly by the paddles, thus reducing the intensity of the action of the paddles on the larger load. Thus, tilting the housing back allows more free space below the rotor, and this free space acts to store thehandkerchiefs to a certain extent so that they are not all in action at the same time.

For angularly shifting or turning said casing a manually operable arm 49 is secured to the end plate I3 by bolts 4i, and to maintain said casing in the desired position of adjustment the cap 9' for the bearing portion 9 is yieldingly urged against the hub portion l I of the casing by springs 42 mounted on and adjustably tensionedby the guide bolts 53 for said bearing cap. A similar arrangement for tensioningthe bearing portion It) is provided for the cap It of said portion. The angular movementof said casing 'lrrelative to the rotor is limited in one direction by a stop 44 engageable with the frame 6 and in the opposite direction by a stop 45 engageable with said frame.

The casing drum 7 has an opening 56 in its periphery located on the opposite side from that on which the fixed blade 34 is mounted and through which the articles to be straightened are loaded into the drum and from which they are discharged during the operation of the rotor. This opening 46 is provided with a closureor door 41 mounted on the drum, so that it may be bodily removed therefrom or may be swung from either its top or bottom side. For this purpose the door M is provided at its top and bottom with hinge connections with the casing. Each of these hinge connections includes a pair of hinge rods 48 slidably mounted and guided on the door and movable at their outer ends into the hinge bores 49 in the hinge brackets 50 mounted on the casing 1'. 'Each rod is normally moved outwardly to a hinge release position by a'spring5l, and both rods are moved oiltwardly against the action of the springs 5! by a cam member 52rotatably mounted on the door and moved by an operating handle 53 secured thereto, said cam when in one extreme position acting to secure s'aid rods in their full hinged position as shown in Fig. 2 but adapted when turned at ninety degrees thereto to permit said springs 5| to move said rodsto a release position. Thus. by turning the upper cam 52 to a release position the door may be, opened fromffits topside and swung about the lower set'.of hinge rods 48 toa charging position, and

tumbling, fiipping, and drawing action of said paddles thereby effected, straightened out or fiufied, so that when the door 41 is opened by releasing its bottom hinge connections and swinging it upwardly, the handkerchiefs or other articles are thrown by the rotor through the opening '46 and delivered into the hopper 55 in a spread out or fiuffed condition. The machine may, if desired, be reloaded immediately without removing the'fiuffed'handkerchiefs by simply latching the hinge at the bottom of the door and opening the door again at the top by releasing its tophinge and placing the new load in the door 41 and then closing said door, in which case said door becomes a loading hopper and covers the lower hopper 55. In one position of adjustment of the casing, the paddles 22 having the straight serrations come quite close to the paddle member 34 and loosely intermesh therewith while the paddles 22 having the stepped serrated edges provide greater clearance between them and the paddle 34, first at one side of the paddle 34 and then at the other side as will be noted from the relation of the paddles 22 to the paddle 34 as shown in Fig. 4. The serrated edge construction of the paddles and the above described arrangement act to distribute .the handkerchiefs around the machine so that they will not tend to bunch and to spread them out when cooperating with the fixed blade. It is also to'be noted that since the paddles 22 and 34 are of relatively soft rubber, they will yieldin case the articles being treated tend to jam between said fixed paddle 34 and moving paddles 22. Furthermore, the casing 7 maybe swung t'o provide greater clearance between the paddles 22 and its bottom as the amount of the load introduced into the machine is increased, and tofacilitate this adjustment the casing I may have a marker or pointer 56 mounted thereon co'operating with a scale 51 provided on the housing 58 for the drive connections between the motor '33 and therotor shaft I6.

The door ll-is preferablyprovided with a sight opening 59c'overed by the glass window 60. 7 We desire it to be understood that this invention isnot to be limited to any particular form tively stationary paddle mounted in said casing to restrict at one point the passage of the handkerchiefs. and the like in'said casing between it and the paddlesof the rotor, and means for adjusting the position of said casing rela tive to said rotor to vary the clearance between the lower portion ofthe casing and said movable paddles. V

2. In a device of the character described, the combination of a frame, a material-receiving casing eccentrically mounted on said frame on a horizontal axis, a rotor journalled in the mounting of said casing and provided with a plurality of paddle members, a relatively fixed paddle member mounted on the inner wall of said casing and cooperating with said movable paddles to form a restricted passage, and means for shifting said casing on its mounting to vary the clearance between a wall of said casing and said movable paddles.

3. In a device of the character described, the combination of a casing mounted on a horizontal axis and having a charging and discharging opening, a :closure for said opening, a rotor mounted in said casing and provided with yieldable paddles to engage and carry handkerchiefs and the like therethrough in a circuitous path, a yieldable paddle carried by said casing and cooperating with said movable paddles to form a restricted passage, and means for varying the position of said casing relative to said rotor to vary the clearance between the lower portion of said casing and said movable paddles.

4. In a device of the character described, the combination of a frame, a casing eccentrically mounted on said frame on a horizontal axis and provided with an opening in its periphery, a door for said opening having releasable hinged connection at its top and bottom portions with said casing, a rotor journalled in the mounting of said casing and provided with a plurality of paddle members, a relatively fixed paddle member projecting from the inner wall of said casing and cooperating with the paddles of the rotor to form a restricted passage, and means for shifting said casing on its mounting to vary the [clearance between the lower portion of said casing and said movable paddles.

5. In a device of the character described, the combination of a frame, a casing eccentrically mounted on said frame on a horizontal axis and provided with an, opening in its periphery, a door for said opening having releasable hinged connection at its top and bottom portions with said casing, a hopper exterior of said casing and adjacent the hinged connection at the bottom portion of said door, a rotor journalled in the mounting of said casing and provided with a plurality of paddle members, a relatively fixed paddle member projectig from the inner wall of said casing and cooperating with the paddles of the rotor to form a restricted passage, and means for shifting said casing on its mounting to vary the clearance between the lower portion of said casing and said movable paddles.

6. In a device of the character described, the combination of a frame, a casing mounted on said frame on a horizontal axis, a rotor mounted in said casing and provided with oppositely disposed recesses, yieldable sheet material clamped intermediate its ends in each of said recesses to form a pair of paddles, the outer edges of said paddles being serrated, a serrated yieldable paddle member carried by the inner wall of said casing and cooperating with the paddle members of said rotor to form a restricted passage therebetween.

' Z. In a device of the character described, the

combination of a frame, a material-receiving casing mounted on said frame on a horizontal axis, a rotor journalled in said casing and provided with a plurality of yieldable paddle members having serrated outer edges, and a yieldable paddle member mounted on the inner wall of said casing and having a serrated outer edge cooperating with said movable paddles to form a restricted passage.

8. In a device of the-character described, the combination of a frame, a material-receiving casing mounted on. said frame on a horizontal axis, a rotor journalled in said casing and provided with a plurality of yieldable paddle members each having serrated edges radially extending alternately further and less than a given line, said line being substantially parallel to the axis of said rotor for certain of said paddles, and inclined for others, and a serrated edged yieldable paddle member mounted on the inner Wall of said casing and co-operat-ing with said movable paddles to form a restricted passage.

9. In a device of the character described, the combination of a casing for handkerchiefs and the like to be treated having a bottom towards which the handkerchiefs may gravitate, a rotor mounted to rotate on a horizontal axis in the casing and having yieldable paddles spaced closer to the bottom of the casing than the top to provide a tendency for urging the handkerchiefs in the bottom of the casing toward the top of the casing and tumble them about in said casing, and means in the upper part only of said casing which together with said paddles forms a relatively narrow passage through which the handkerchiefs are drawn to straighten and fluff them and from which they are free to expand into the unobstructed space in the upper part of the casing beyond said passage.

10. In a device of the character described, the combination of a casing having a common inlet and discharge opening at the front thereof and a bottom portion towards which handkerchiefs and the like may gravitate, a closure for said opening, a rotor mounted to rotate in the casing on a horizontal axis and having yieldable paddles spaced closer to the bottom of said casing than the upper portion to provide for urging the handkerchiefs in the bottom of the casing toward the top and tumble the same about in said casing, and means in the upper part of said casing which together with said paddles forms a relatively narrow passage through which the handkerchiefs are passed to straighten and fluff the same and beyond which the handkerchiefs are free to expand and either fall back to the bottom of the casing or be propelled by the paddles of the rotor through the discharge opening, said discharge opening being located in the path of the handkerohiefs or the like being circulated by said paddles within said casing.

11. In a device of the character described, the combination of a casing for handkerchiefs and the like to be treated having a curved bottom portion toward which the handkerchiefs may freely gravitate, a rotor mounted to rotate in the casing on a horizontal axis and having yieldable paddles whose arc of movement is closer to the bottom of the casing than the top to provide a tendency to urge the handkerchiefs in the bottom of the casing toward the top of the casing to tumble the same about the casing, and a yieldable paddle mounted in the upper part of the casing and inclining toward the bottom thereof to intercept the free movement of the hand- -kerchiefs as they are thrown into the upper'part of the casing -bythe' rotor so as'to assist the tumbling action thereof and whose lower edge extends relatively close to the peripheral edges of the paddles to restrict the flow of handkerchiefs through a section of the casing-to arelatively narrow passage-which tends to straighten and fiufi out the handkerchiefs during their passage therethrough, and means at the upper part of said casing permitting i the feeding of the handkerchiefs to and discharging of the handkerchiefs from said casing. I

12. In a device of the character described, the combination of a frame, a casing eccentrically mounted on said frame on a horizontal axis and provided with an opening in its periphery, a door for said opening swingable' about either of twov opposite edges providing closing, charging, and discharging positions' relative' to" said' casing; a rotor journalle'd in the'mounting of said casing and provided with la plurality of; paddle inem ere s a iv fi d pad m be roiei aing from the inner -wall of said casing and c0- operating'with the paddles'of the rotor to form a restricted passage. V-

13: In a device of the charaoter'described, the oombinationof a frame, a casing eocentrically mounted on said frame on a'horizontal axis and provided withan opening in its periphery, a door for said opening having releasably hinged connection at its top and bottom portions with said casing, a hopper exterior of said casing and adjacent the hinged connection at the bottom portion of said door, a rotor journalled in the mounting of said'casing and provided with a plurality of paddle members, a relatively fixed paddle member projecting from-the inner wall of said casingand cooperating withthe paddles of the rotor to form a restricted passage.

V JOSEPH HUEBSCH.

HER/BERT J. HUEBSCH. v 

